Collateral

Mr Smith and Rose walk back outside, and they both get into the red race car.

Rose looks at the dashboard. She had never driven a race car before. The insides looked more like the self-driving cars she was used to than Drew’s street racing car.

“Do you know how to drive?” Mr Smith asks.

Rose shakes her head. “No, I don’t. I only drive analogue cars.”

“Stick shift?” He asks.

“Are you crazy,” Rose laughs. “This is not 2010.”

“Let me show you how to drive this car.” Mr Smith says

He presses some buttons, and the car starts rolling forward.

“This car is mostly computer-driven,” Mr Smith explains. While he is saying that, Rose notices the car is speeding up and following the track with inhuman precision. “We don’t have to do anything.”

Rose looks at the dashboard. “You’re kidding me.”

“I am not. This isn’t the 2020s anymore. Car’s drive themselves these days.”

“This is so different from street racing.”

“Yes, it is, But I think you’ll like it.”

Rose shakes her head. “I don’t like situations where I am not in control. Why would I enjoy being driven around by a computer? Why do you even need a driver at this point?”

“The human driver is for show.” He says.

“What do you mean?”

“People don’t want to bet on a race between a bunch of computers. So we put human pilots in, so people bet more money.”

“But the human pilots don’t make a difference,” Rose says

Mr Smith laughs. “They don’t. But people think they do. That is the important part.”

“So you are scamming people. Thanks for the opportunity, but I don’t like to be driven around at high speeds by a vehicle I can’t control. So I won’t take the job.”

Mr Smith laughs. “At the moment, I have enough pilots. As you said, driving this car is a no-skill job. What I need are technicians.”

Rose looks at the dashboard. “I am sure you can find way better technicians than me. I only worked on my boyfriend’s car. And it was way different from this one. It was fully analogue.”

Mr Smith smiles. “That’s true, but I want to work with you. You’re a smart girl. I am sure you can figure out things way faster than others.”

“What does that even mean?”

He continues. “Do you know what the main income source of this track is?”

“I assume gambling.”

“Exactly.” Mr Smith says. “You can bet on any race. Races on the track and the streets. People can bet on which car will win. Or they can bet on how fast a car will go or who will crash and die.”

“Why would anyone do that?”

“People like to gamble. They enjoy the thrill of winning or losing. And if I can give the masses what they want, and make a nice amount of money by doing that, why not?”

Rose thinks for a moment, “But if every car is self-driving, that means you know beforehand who will win.”

“That’s right,” Mr Smith says.

“Then you have an unfair advantage.”

“You are getting it, Rose.” Mr Smith smiles.

“You can make a fortune off of this.”

“Exactly, I can,” Mr Smith says. “And you can help me do it.”

“Come with me. I’ll show you.”

Rose gets out of the car and follows Mr Smith to the garages where two other racecars are parked. He walks up to one of them.

“This is one of my racecars,” he says. “It’s called the Bluebird.”

Rose looks at the car and slaps the trunk with her hand. “Nice.”

Mr Smith walks over to another car. “And this car is called the Blackbird.”

Rose looks at the other car. It looks identical, except it is black instead of blue. “How original. I suppose the car we just raced in is called the Redbird?”

Mr Smith laughs. “It is called the red cardinal.”

Rose sighs. “Isn’t that bird commonly known as the redbird?”

Mr Smith looks at Rose. “It is. Don’t you think it’s cool?”

Rose smiles. “Yes, it is. I like it.”

“Now, imagine I need the red car to win the race tomorrow.” Mr Smith says.

“You want to rig the race so the red car will win?”

“Yes, exactly. How would you accomplice that?”

Rose thinks for a moment. “We could limit the top speed of the blue one.”

Mr Smith nods. “But then the blue car would be behind the red car the whole race. It would be obvious to the crowd that it is slightly slower. They will see through it. They will see it is rigged.”

“So, what do you want me to do instead?”

“You know how to work on cars. You’re a smart girl. Can you figure out a way to rig the race without making it obvious?” Mr smiths look at her in anticipation.

Rose thinks for a bit. “I think, I can.”

“Good,” Mr Smith says. “I am all ears.”

“The last turn of the track is sharper than all the others. That means if the blue car has a higher speed, but we limit its turn radius, it will crash right before the finish line.”

Mr Smith looks at Rose. “Then the red car will win.”

“Exactly,”

“Can you make that happen?”

“Yes, I can.”

“Okay, show me.”

Later that night, Rose and Mr Smith watch as the two cars race on the track. The blue one is clearly faster. It easily stays in front of the red car.

“You can see the difference.” Mr Smith exclaims. “It seems obvious that the blue car will win.”

Rose grins. “It does seem that way.”

The blue car enters the last turn. It is hundreds of meters ahead of the red car and drives at an intense speed. Rose wonders how fast the car is going. It must be over two hundred kilometres an hour. The blue car suddenly loses control and crashes on the outside of the sharp turn. It impacts a wall with advertisements, and metal parts fly everywhere.

Mr Smith gasps. “Did that look like an accident?”

Rose nods. “Yes, it did.”

The red car drives past the wreck without any worry in the world and crosses the finish line.

“We have a winner.” Mr Smith exclaims.

“Are you going to do the same thing while a pilot is inside the car?” Rose asks.

“Yes,” Mr Smith says. That is all he says. A simple yes.

“We must recalibrate it, so the pilot doesn’t die in the crash,” Rose says. This crash is way to violent.

Mr Smith laughs. “No, we don’t have to. I’ll just bet on the death of the driver. We can make even more money this way.”

“Are you just letting a driver die for a quick buck?”

“You’re damn right I am.”

“And you expect me to be okay with that?”

Mr Smith laughs. “What other choice do you have? If you refuse, I can hire someone else. And I can probably get away with it. While you will probably miss rent at the end of the month, and you and your daughter end up on the street.”

“I don’t give a shit about fairness,” Mr Smith says. “I only care about winning. It’s that simple.”

Rose shakes her head. “I will never do it.”

“If you don’t want the job, I am not going to force you.” Mr Smith says. “I’ll just give you and your daughter a ride home. If you change your mind, you know where to find me.”

After being dropped off at her apartment, Rose walks inside. A letter is taped to the door.

Rose removes the letter and walks in, carrying Ellie. She puts Ellie in her crib and opens the letter.

“Notice for late payment. If rent is not paid by the end of the week. You will be evicted. This is your last warning.”

Subtle as always. Rose sighs. “I guess I desperately need a job.”